Tribe of Meadow Valley: To Be Saved
Tribe of Meadow Valley: To Be Saved is by SpoofDarklion44 Tribe of Meadow Valley: To Be Saved Allegiances Tribe of Meadow Valley- prologue Leader-cat: Circling Hawk, gray and brown she-cat with intense violet-blue eyes Next-up: Calling Eagle, blue-gray she-cat with one sky-blue eye and one green eye Know-heal: Falling Petal, white she-cat with pale gray petal-shaped marks Hunt-fors: Scrabbling Paws, blue-gray tom with midnight blue eyes Leaping Trout, silver she-cat with deep blue eyes Catching Stars, black tom with white flecks and green eyes Reddening Sky, reddish-ginger tom with pine green eyes Turning Leaf, ginger she-cat with leaf-green eyes Watch-guards: Snowing Cloud, white she-cat with blue eyes Leaping Deer, brown tom with white flecks over back and brown eyes Rising Sun, golden she-cat with gray-green eyes Growing Moon, white and silver tom with moon-gray eyes In-trainings: Dapple (to be Dappling Feathers), tortoiseshell she-cat with silvery amber eyes Flick (to be Flickering Star), black and ginger tom with deep brown eyes Feeding-kits: Chasing Dust, pale brown tabby she-cat with pale amber eyes. Mother of Catching Stars’s kits. Gazing Eyes, gray and white she-cat with blind blue eyes. Mother of Growing Moon’s kits. Kit-soons: Flaring Flame, bright ginger she-cat with amber-orange eyes. Expecting Scrabbling Paws’s kits. Young-kits: of Chasing Dust and Catching Stars: Branch (to be Branching Stem), a tom that looks like Chasing Dust Storm (to be Storming Rain), a tom that looks like Catching Star of Gazing Eyes and Growing Moon: Bright (to be Brightening Flash), a she-cat that looks like Gazing Eyes but can see Splash (to be Splashing Salmon), a she-cat that looks like Growing Moon Rush (to be Rushing Stream), a she-cat that looks like Growing Moon Older-ones: former Hunt-fors: Hopping Rabbit, gray tom with a short white tail and blue eyes former Watch-guards Fleeing Mouse, dusky gray tom with a thin-furred tail and bright amber eyes Tribe of Meadow Valley- after attack Circling Hawk, gray and brown she-cat with intense violet-blue eyes Leaping Deer, brown tom with white flecks over back and brown eyes Dappling Feathers, tortoiseshell she-cat with silvery amber eyes Flaring Flame, bright ginger she-cat with amber-orange eyes. Setting Sun, ginger she-cat with amber eyes. Daughter of Flaring Flame. Falling Night, blue-gray tom with midnight blue eyes. Son of Flaring Flame. Cats of No Tribe Fion’a, brown tabby she-cat with lighter stripes and blue eyes Benjie, black and white tom with pale greenish eyes Jordan, brown tom with amber eyes (lost in prologue) Garrett, brown tom with tiny white flecks over muzzle and green eyes James, ginger tom with brown eyes Brett, long-legged black tom with near-black green eyes George, slightly chubby black, brown, and white tom with green eyes Tom, gray tabby tom with white underbelly and amber eyes Jerry, gray tabby tom with amber eyes (Tom’s brother) Robert, golden tom with amber eyes Matthew, black tom with brown eyes Noah, young ginger tom with blue eyes Chase, young ginger tom with blue eyes (Noah’s brother) David and Daniel, identically flecked brown toms with black flecks and amber eyes Tanner and Connor, mirror images. Tanner is black with white spots and Connor is white with black spots. Sean, gray and brown tom with brown eyes Simon, pale ginger tom with green eyes (lost in prologue) The Beckoner, gray tom with amber eyes The Chanters, the variously colored followers of the Beckoner Sarona, black tom with green eyes. Hazel, young brown she-cat with green eyes. Ravar, black and white tom with blue eyes. Komas, dark reddish-brown she-cat with amber eyes. Sister of Blaze. Blaze, dark reddish-brown tom with amber eyes. Brother of Komas. Fang, ginger tom with blue eyes. KoraNyte, pitch black and very dark brown she-cat with one blue eye and one amber eye. Jeopardy, blue-gray tom with blue eyes Eclipse, black and ginger she-cat with bright amber eyes Pholite, ginger tom with blue eyes PROLOGUE Nineteen cats stalked in what little shadow there was skirting the bright valley, silently scrutinizing a group of 27 as they had done for the past moon. They now knew their opponents’ every battle tactic, every weakness and every secret. It was almost time to strike. The leader dragged her tail along the ground to show the others to get into position. And so they did. They waited for a few heartbeats, watching her for the signal. Finally, the time was right! She raised her head and tail. All nineteen sprang out and latched with their claws onto the back of the nearest cat. Screeches erupted around the valley as blood spurted around them. One of the attacking cats, a pale ginger tom with green eyes, was flung to the side. Now it was eighteen to twenty five, as he had bravely taken on two and won. The blue-gray and black she-cat somehow managed to pin down a lithe gray and brown she-cat. It hissed at her. “Fion’a, you rascal!” the pinned cat snarled. “Do you think I haven’t seen your stupid gleaming eyes flash from the shadows?” “Circling Hawk, come on! If you’d seen me, you wouldn’t have allowed your cats to show us everything! We heard everything you’ve talked about and seen your battle practice! Seriously, you empty-head!” Fion’a purred sinisterly. An old gray tom with a short white tail screeched, “Circling Hawk!” and leaped on top of Fion’a. “Hopping Rabbit, no! You’re too old to fight!” Circling Hawk wailed, flinching as Fion’a raked her too-long claws down the old cat’s side. “You’re my Leader-cat!” Hopping Rabbit hissed, swiping at the blue-gray muzzle. “I couldn’t let her keep you down!” But Fion’a was too quick. While Hopping Rabbit talked, she took the final plunge and dug her fangs into the back of his neck. His gray body went limp. “Hopping Rabbit, no!” Circling Hawk wailed. “You… you traitor!” she hissed at Fion’a. “First you left us, betrayed us all, as Swiping Claws. Then you abandoned your Tribe name and became Fion’a, and now you kill one of your own kin! You were never worthy a place in this Tribe!” Fion’a purred in a scathing voice. “Oh, Circling Hawk! Look around you. Look!” Circling Hawk became anxious, but she looked. Bodies were scattered everywhere. Most were her own. Leaping Deer, Dapple, and Flaring Flame were the only remaining of her Tribe she could see. Unfortunately, of Fion’a’s followers, only Simon and Jordan lay motionless. The rest were alive. She let her gaze travel, terrified, over the place that had once been her Clan’s safe camp. She tried to believe that there were more of her cats alive, that they were simply unconscious and would get up soon. But as the triumphant attackers padded away from the valley, she knew that this was it. Her Tribe of 27, diminished to only four. Flaring Flame let out a low moan, and it raised into a yowl, flaring like the flame in her name. Her kits were coming! “Oh, no,” Circling Hawk moaned. She wasn’t a Know-heal! How was she supposed to help a cat give birth? Dapple rushed up. “I’ve watched Falling Petal when she was helping Gazing Eyes. I think I remember. Leaping Deer, go get a firm stick for her to bite. Circling Hawk, please get some damp moss so she can drink if she’s thirsty.” She felt the ginger belly of Flaring Flame. “I think there’s two.” Leaping Deer returned, and Dapple pushed the stick under Flaring Flame’s jaw. “Bite it when the pain comes.” The ginger cat convulsed, and gripped the stick. Circling Hawk came back with some moss, and Flaring Flame lapped a few drops gratefully. She hardly noticed when a little kit slid out. “Leaping Deer, start licking it. Lick it from tail to head to warm it up,” Dapple instructed, and looked at the ginger cat in time to see another bundle on the ground. “Circling Hawk, start licking this one while I see if there’s any more.” She felt around gently. “Nope, that’s all! What do you think you’re going to name them?” she inquired, guiding the kits to their mother. “Wait!” Circling Hawk wailed. The three cats all turned to look at her, surprised. “I don’t think we have reason to call a Tribe anymore, so why should we need Tribe names?” The others gasped in shock. “I will be Hawk. You will be Flare and Leap. Dapple, when your mother had you, she told me to name you Dappling Feathers, so you will be known as Feather. Flare, please name your kits such as this.” Flare looked dismayed. “I was just thinking that they would be named Setting Sun and Falling Night!” Hawk snapped, “So name them Sunset and Night!” Feather looked at Leap in horror. What was she doing? Leap stepped forward cautiously. “Circling Hawk-“ Hawk interrupted him. “That is not my name!” She stormed away to her den. CHAPTER ONE Hawk circled protectively around Sunset and Night with Leap, Flare, and Feather. Cats were approaching from every direction. No matter what, they had to protect the kits! Suddenly, the cats all leaped as one in a rhythmic flow. As they slashed her mercilessly, she felt her life ebbing away. Just before it all went black, she saw a cat stabbing the two kits with a claw. She’d failed them! Leap, Flare, and Feather were all dead, too. She’d failed as their leader. She didn’t try to resist the wave of darkness that washed over her. Hawk woke with a gasp. She raced to the makeshift nursery. She felt so relieved when she saw Sunset and Night asleep with their mother, Flare. Sunset’s paws were flopped over Night, and Night was snoring softly. She stroked the ginger and blue-gray pelts of the precious kits with her tail. How glad she was to dream, oh how glad! When dawn came, Hawk called the other cats together. “I… I was wrong,” she confessed, embarrassed. “Wrong- to deprive you of your names. I am Circling Hawk. You are Leaping Deer, Flaring Flame, Dappling Feather, and yes, little kits, Setting Sun and Falling Night. I was wrong.” Her cats looked at each other, happy if not a bit startled. Then Flaring Flame called out, “Yeah! Thank you, Circling Hawk!” The others stared a moment longer, then broke out in cheers. “Circling Hawk! Circling Hawk!” As Circling Hawk began to pad back to her den, Leaping Deer bounded up beside her. “What made you change your mind?” Circling Hawk sighed. “You are my Tribe. We had been driven out from our home, the Meadow Valley; how could I take your names from you as well?” The brown tom understood her too well. “No, that’s not it. There’s something else, isn’t there?” “Yes. I had a nightmare, that we were all killed, including the kits. I knew that when we died, we ought die with our Tribe names.” Leaping Deer halted. “You miss the Meadow Valley too, right?” Before his Leader-cat could respond, he continued, “We’ll find a safer place to live, similar to the Meadow Valley but safer. I promise.” Circling Hawk purred. She loved him truly with all of her heart. She realized that he might love her back. A moon later, Circling Hawk lay in the nursery, nudging a stray kit back into the nest. Just that morning, she had given birth to kits- one brown tom with white flecks all over, one gray she-kit, and one brown she-kit. Leaping Deer padded through the willow’s branches. They had managed to find a clearing in a forest, with a willow tree surrounded by brambles for a nursery. “This is a great replacement of Meadow Valley… in fact, I know a great name for this place. Willow Heights!” Leaping Deer meowed triumphantly. “I guess we’re known as the Tribe of Willow Heights now.” “That’s great,” Circling Hawk murmured, gently stroking her kits. “What will we name these little guys?” “I think… the little she-kits should be Gripping Talon and Swooping Eagle, in honor to your name, Circling Hawk. But what about this tough ol’ tom?” Circling Hawk didn’t hesitate. “Trotting Fawn. Like you, Leaping Deer.” Nearby, Flaring Flame lay with her kits, two moons old. “Those are wonderful names,” she purred. Setting Sun and Falling Night were tumbling around carelessly. Since they had opened their eyes, they’d been a paw-full of work for their mother. Setting Sun wrenched herself away from her brother and stood on her tiny ginger paws. “They’re not as good as us!” “Yeah!” Falling Night added. “We’re the best of anyone!” “I’m sure, little ones.” Flaring Flame exchanged an amused glance with the other cats. “I’m gonna be even better than you, Falling Night!” “Nuh uh!” “Yuh huh!” “I’m gonna rule the whole of Willow Heights!” “No, I am!” Flaring Flame broke into their argument. “Little kits, neither of you can take over Willow Heights unless you get your sleep. Come rest now, and we can all take over the Heights tomorrow. Okay?” “Okay,” the kits whined, sorrowfully but obediently climbing into the nest. “Oh, these kits are just a paw-full!” the bright ginger cat wailed when the little kits fell asleep. “I don’t know how I can keep on managing them without Scrabbling Paws here to guide me!” A soft breeze whisked around the willow den. Scrabbling Paws’s blue-gray figure was standing in the den, his midnight blue eyes sincere. “I am with you. I am always with you, my Flaring Flame, and I will be always.” “Oh,” Flaring Flame murmured. “My dear, my sweet, my gentle Scrabbling Paws. You have returned to me…” Scrabbling Paws looked hurt. “I was always with you,” he protested. “I was always watching over you! Every heartbeat since my life was taken! Every heartbeat!” And with that, the tom vanished. “No!” Flaring Flame cried. “No, I didn’t mean it like that!” “He’s gone,” Circling Hawk murmured. “But I’m still here.” “It’s not the same!” Flaring Flame yowled. It caused Dappling Feathers to come racing over. “What’s wrong, Flaring Flame? I could hear you from the other side of this place!” “Willow Heights,” Leaping Deer corrected. “I don’t care! What’s wrong?” Flaring Flame was only able to let out a low whimper. “Scrabbling Paws was here,” Circling Hawk explained. “She said he had returned to her, but Scrabbling Paws took it the wrong way and left.” Flaring Flame whimpered again. “There’s nothing we can do for her now,” Dappling Feathers sighed. “She must face this alone.” Circling Hawk was exhausted. Flaring Flame had passed away from grief. “At least she’ll be able to hunt with Scrabbling Paws,” the Leader-cat had said sadly. So Setting Sun and Falling Night were now considered her kits, as well as Trotting Fawn, Swooping Eagle, and Gripping Talon. Talk about work! Leaping Deer’s brown pelt was just visible through the willow’s branches. He was whispering something to a cat Circling Hawk couldn’t see. Then he came inside. “There’s a small group of cats out here to see you,” he said. “Stay here, kits,” Circling Hawk warned, and followed her mate. She was shocked. There wasn’t just a ‘small group of cats,’ as Leaping Deer had said, but enough to make a small tribe. At least fifteen, she thought. The leader, a gray tom, stepped forward. “Hello, Circling Hawk,” he said, nodding respectfully. “Welcome to Willow Heights,” she replied cautiously. “What do you want?” “I am the Beckoner. I call together groups of cats. We wander pointlessly. We heard about you from a cat named Fion’a- she doesn’t seem to like you- and decided to find you.” “Fion’a, that pile of worthless scum,” Circling Hawk muttered beneath her breath. Out loud, she said, “Well, Beckoner, you are welcome to join the Tribe of Willow Heights. We-” “Wait,” the Beckoner interrupted. “Fion’a said you were the Tribe of Meadow Valley.” “We were driven from Meadow Valley,” Leaping Deer spat. “This is our new home, Willow Heights. Fion’a will not take it from us.” “Yes,” Circling Hawk agreed. “We will protect the Heights. But as I was saying, we would be happy to have you with us, in case Fion’a wants to try driving us out again.” “No!” the Beckoner said with such force, Circling Hawk was simply shocked. “No! We will not join you! You will join us. You will join me.” The other cats chanted with the Beckoner. “You will join us. You will come. You will be ours. You will listen. You will hear us. You will come. You will join us. You will come.” “Leaping Deer began to pad forward in a daze. Circling Hawk blocked his path. “No! You can’t join them!” The Beckoner stopped chanting. “How are you resisting the Beckon?” “I don’t know,” Circling Hawk growled. “But I am. Now go away. You will not come back.” The Beckoner looked stung, as if he wanted to protest, but he obeyed and turned away. “Let all members of this Tribe hear my words to meet me at the Willow Rock!” Leaping Deer called. Since Circling Hawk had had her kits, he’d been the unnamed Leader-cat. Once the Tribe cats, how little there were, had gathered, he continued. “Today we have new In-trainings,” he announced. “Five of them. There are not enough of us, so we will all share their training. Setting Sun, Falling Night, Trotting Fawn, Gripping Talon, and Swooping Eagle, step forward.” The excited kits padded in front of their mother’s- or adopted mother’s- mate. “I now name you In-trainings. You will learn the skills of the Willow Heights, as we have no need for separate duties any more, and we will honor you when you become full Height cats.” Circling Hawk was uncomfortable with the new words. If she had been in Meadow Valley, the words would have been, “I now name you In-trainings. You will learn the skills of the Hunt-fors, Setting Sun and Gripping Talon, and the skills of the Watch-guards, Falling Night, Trotting Fawn, and Swooping Eagle. We will honor you when you become full Valley cats.” The new In-trainings were instantly bundles of energy. They bounced around with excitement, not caring- or knowing- how different this ceremony was, or even what the ‘separate duties’ mentioned were. Circling Hawk sighed. Why did it have to be like this? Why couldn’t they have stayed in Meadow Valley? Oh, that’s right. Fion’a sent cats every day to remind them to leave, threatening that if they didn’t leave within a moon, the remaining few of the Clan would be terminated. She knew it would even be okay just to be in Meadow Valley, to have something like “I now name you In-trainings. You will learn the skills of the Meadow Valley, as we have no need for separate duties any more, and we will honor you when you become full Valley cats.” That would have been okay. Why had her Tribe come to this? Why? CHAPTER TWO One season-circle later, Circling Hawk had passed away. Leaping Deer was the Leader-cat now. Setting Sun, Falling Night, Trotting Fawn, Swooping Eagle, and Gripping Talon were now Tribe Warrior-cats. Dappling Feathers was the Heal-cat. The Tribe still mourned Circling Hawk, Flaring Flame, and those who had died. But they knew one day they would become great again. It came sooner than they expected… Leaping Deer was in the little warren cave that made the Leader-cat den. A sudden rush of paws pattered over him. It was definitely more cats than those in his Tribe. Curious, he went up the tunnel. Standing in his camp were at least eight beat-up, terrified, and bleeding cats. Their fur was fluffed up in pure fear. Each was screeching hoarsely. “Help us!” the leader was rasping. “Help us! It’s Fion’a and her cats! They’re gonna kill us!” “Fion’a!” Leaping Deer spat the name of his Tribe’s oldest enemy with disgust. “We’ll do the best we can to help you.” “Thank you!” various cats wailed gratefully. No sooner than the last weak voice had given its thanks, Fion’a’s blue-gray and black head appeared, her vicious blue eyes yowling her anger louder than her voice ever could. “You tried to take over our territory!” she screeched wildly. “No, Fion’a! We didn’t!” The leading cat flinched fearfully, his pelt still standing on end. “You know quite well, Sarona, that you tried to invade us!” Fion’a hissed, launching herself at the cat. The brown and gray tom tried desperately to escape, writhing under the fierce and lengthy claws. Fion’a lifted one paw, ready to strike. “NO!” Leaping Deer yowled, launching himself on top of Fion’a and smashing her raised paw into the ground. Flaring Flame came out of her den. She stopped short when she saw Fion’a and the strange cats. Before Leaping Deer knew what he was doing, he unsheathed his claws and swiped at Fion’a. Her body became limp beneath his paws. “Thank you,” Sarona wheezed, shocked. “You didn’t have to go that far, though…” “Yes, he did,” Flaring Flame interrupted. “Fion’a is our oldest enemy. We used to be a big Tribe of cats, but she killed us down to four. Then I had two kits, and Circling Hawk had three. We were up to nine. We’re eight now, because Circling Hawk died.” “Fion’a killed her?” a young she-cat asked. “No. She… she died when she… when she…” Flaring Flame couldn’t say it, and just broke down. “When she what?” the cat demanded. “That’s enough, Hazel,” an older she-cat scolded. “Please excuse my daughter,” she apologized. “She’s always so inquisitive, but she gets a little too nosy sometimes.” “Oh, it’s okay,” Leaping Deer assured her. “Our beloved Circling Hawk- my dear mate- died chasing a rabbit. She fell over a cliff.” He bowed his head. Gripping Talon came out. “She lived a noble life,” she meowed softly. She died hunting for her Tribe. She was a good Leader-cat.” “A Leader-cat?” Hazel asked, puzzled. “What’s that?” Leaping Deer responded, “A Leader-cat is the cat that leads the Tribe. I am that cat now.” “You know,” a different tom said from the back of the small group, “It would be cool to join a Tribe. Learn how it works, you know, Sarona? If we don’t like it we can leave, but it’d be cool to see…” “I agree, Ravar,” Sarona called. “May we?” he asked politely. “Yes,” Flaring Flame purred. “It’s always good to have more cats to help defend us if someone- not Fion’a anymore!- attacks us.” Leaping Deer considered this. “I agree, Flaring Flame. Everyone join me at the Willow Rock. We have more cats tonight.” “Sarona, Ravar, please step forward,” Leaping Deer said. “I now name you cats of the Tribe of Willow Heights. From now on you will be known as Flashing Spark and Soaring Bird.” “Hazel, please come forward. I now name you a cat of the Tribe of Willow Heights. From now on you will be known as Scurrying Squirrel.” He went on to name the others- Komas and Blaze became Spreading Fire and Burning Branch; Fang became Slashing Tooth; KoraNyte became Shaded Briar; Jeopardy and Eclipse became Killing Claws and Blocking Sun; and Pholite became Lightening Day. The Tribe of Willow Heights could be called a Tribe again! “Let all members of this Tribe hear my words to meet me at the Willow Rock!” Leaping Deer yowled, leaping skillfully onto the high rock as he had done so many times before. He began to talk when the cats of all colors had joined him. “We now meet to honor my beloved Circling Hawk. For those of you new to the Tribe, Circling Hawk was my mate and my dearest friend. Four seasons ago, she passed away. We now take vigil to honor her.” For a moment, every cat there was silent. But Spreading Fire broke the precious vigil. “I’m outta here. I never knew this ol’ cat, why should I honor her?” The whole silence broke. Leaping Deer stared after the young cat in shock. “Wait, Spreading Fire!” he yowled frantically. The tom turned back. But Leaping Deer could say no more for confusion. So Shaded Briar took over the scold. “You ought know so better, Spreading Fire. We are now members of this Tribe; thus we ought honor those fallen before us!” Spreading Fire hung his reddish-brown head in shame. “Yes, I realize that now. Deeply sorry, Leaping Deer.” Leaping Deer finally broke from shock long enough to look up and say, “Thank you… I think you mean it.” Then he went into shock over ''that. ''